Exam malpractices: WAEC sanctions 30 schools in Lagos

lagos—THE West African Examination Council, WAEC, has sanctioned 30 secondary schools in Lagos State over alleged involvement in examination malpractices at the May/June 2015 Senior School Certificate Examination, SSCE. Meantime, the Lagos State Government has concluded plans to shut any private school operating illegally in the state, saying “of the 11, 000 private schools in Lagos, only 4, 000 are registered.”

Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr. Oluranti Adebule said this at a stakeholders meeting with Proprietors and Owners of Private Schools in the state held at Alausa Secretariat, Ikeja. Adebule said, “I am not happy with how the 2015 WAEC examination was held. 30 schools were caught engaging in examination malpractices. This is not good at all as it affects the state in terms of national rating.”

The deputy governor lamented that a larger percent of the private schools in the state do not employ qualified teachers and school administrators, adding that “at the end, students’ outcome and performances are negatively affected.” According to her, “I urge school owners to stop cutting corners for the sake of making money and protect the integrity of the education sector.”

Adebule said “Statistics show that we have over 11, 000 private schools in the state, but only 4, 000 are registered with the ministry of education, meaning that many are operating illegally in the state.” The deputy governor said that the census government would commence censors of private schools in the state and intensify regulations to ensure that required standards are upheld.

She also promised to meet with the tax authority to review levies, dues and taxes to make operations of schools easier for the proprietors. Adebule said “We recognise your role in the sector and as a government we will ensure that you get all the support and we are ready to partner with you to move the sector forward.”